


Patched Up

by sapphicjasper



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, au where theyre not murderers and just a happy family living on a farm together lmao, farmer au, hannibal and will adopt some kitties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:28:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28490157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sapphicjasper/pseuds/sapphicjasper
Summary: Will has always been a dog person, but the moment he lays eyes on three adorable stray cats, he simply can't get his mind off of them.
Relationships: Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Comments: 8
Kudos: 69





	Patched Up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Blurringminds](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blurringminds/gifts).



> just some farmer AU hannigram i wrote for a secret santa thing! hope you enjoy :P

“Hold still, girlie. It won’t hurt if you stop fidgeting.” Will said; but of course, the skittish little horse wasn’t buying it. Trimming hooves was never a breezy task, but when it came to foals, it was a whole different level of difficulty. Fortunately, when it came to animals, he had the diligence and patience that he lacked when it came to humans. 

Will reached for the jar of horse treats and screwed the lid open. At the sight of that, the young horse trotted right back over to him, and Will couldn’t help but smile. “Here.” he said, offering the treat to the eager (yet still nervous) foal. 

As she munched away, it earned him _just_ enough of a distraction to trim the last of her hooves. “And we’re done!” With a sigh of relief, Will packed his tools back up into his handbag. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” he said, giving the horse a gentle pat on the head. 

With all the horses finally groomed, the stables cleaned, and eggs gathered from the chicken coop, he had the rest of the night to relax. He headed out the door and began to make his way towards the house -- only to come to a halt as he heard a voice from behind the stable. 

“That’s good, isn’t it?” 

It was unmistakably Hannibal speaking; but to whom, Will was uncertain. He could see that Abigail was back at the house, sitting on the front porch with a book in her lap. Curious, Will set down his tools and walked around to the back. 

As he turned around the corner, he was met with the sight of Hannibal crouched in the grass. And in front of him were three feral cats, mewling and purring as they feasted from a platter of shredded chicken. 

“You’re dreadfully thin, Rami… Were you abandoned, my dear? I’ll be having a word with whoever did this to you.” Hannibal cooed, running his hand along the tortoiseshell patterned cat’s fur. 

Will leaned against the fence. “Rami?” 

Startled by Will’s presence, Hannibal flinched and nearly lost his balance. Looking rather flustered, he pulled himself to his feet and smoothed out his shirt. “Do _not_ sneak up on me like that.” he scolded once he’d straightened himself up. 

Will, unfazed by Hannibal’s attempt to be intimidating, could only laugh. “Who’re your friends?” he asked. He gestured to the three cats who were tearing into the plate of chicken Hannibal had presumably served them. 

“Just a few strays I found.” Hannibal said, smiling slightly as the tortoiseshell approached him and began to purr. He reached down and lifted her up into his arms. “They were hungry. You know I could never sleep knowing someone is hungry and there’s something I can do about it.” 

Will shied away from the massive long-haired cat as it approached him, rubbing against his jeans and leaving behind its ginger fur; as much as he wanted to reach down and pet it, the dogs were _not_ going to be happy if he came inside with the scent of cats on him. “You know what you’ve gotten yourself into, right?” Will said. “Once you feed them, they’re going to come back.” 

“Well, it’s a good thing we have plenty of food to go around.” Hannibal said. “This is Rami.” he continued, and the cat in his arms let out a _mrow_ as if to confirm. “The orange one is Botticelli, and the white one is Micah.” 

Micah flopped down onto his back and gazed up at Will with his big green eyes. Will’s heart melted at the sight of it -- but he immediately shook it off. “We need to find homes for them.” he said. 

“I’ve already given them one.” Hannibal stated. 

“Hannibal, we have _seven_ dogs.” Will said. 

“And now we have seven dogs and three cats.” Hannibal reached down to pet Micah’s furry belly. 

“We can’t claim them as our own if we’re going to make them live outside.” Will sighed, tensing with guilt as Botticelli’s purring grew louder. “What will we do when winter comes? Leave them out here to freeze? You _know_ I’d love to take them in, Hannibal, but they wouldn’t last a day with our dogs.” 

Hannibal cradled Rami in his arms, letting out a sigh. “I suppose you’re right.” he admitted. He placed the little cat back down in the grass. “The best thing we could do for them is find them new homes. But until that day comes, I am going to keep feeding them.” 

“That should be fine. I’ll give Jack a call and --” Will clenched his teeth as Botticelli climbed up against his jeans, his claws poking through the denim and piercing his legs. He turned his gaze down at those deep amber eyes and let out a sigh of defeat. He was just too cute to ignore. Will reached down to pet him on the head, and he purred gratefully. “...I’ll give Jack a call tomorrow and ask if he wants to take one. I think he told me Bella was a cat person, but they don’t have any pets as far as I know.” he said. “Maybe Alana and Margot, too.” 

“That sounds like a good idea.” Hannibal said, smiling as Micah rubbed up against his legs. “And if we give them to people we know, we’ll be able to visit them in the future.” 

“That’s the idea. They’re really cute, and I wouldn’t insist we give them up if we had a choice.” Will said, approaching Hannibal and slipping his arms around his waist. He pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek, which Hannibal returned. “It’s getting late. Are you ready to head back in?” 

Hannibal glanced back at the cats one last time. “I think so.” he said after a moment’s hesitation. The two of them walked back to the house, leaving the cats behind.

* * *

The sound of thunder shook the house. With a groan, Will rolled over onto his side to face Hannibal. He, too, had been woken up by the sound, but his eyes remained closed. Will glanced down to the foot of their bed, where Winston had curled up at their feet. _’Must have gotten scared.’_ Will thought, glancing over at the empty dog bed in the corner. 

Will laid back down and buried his face into Hannibal’s shoulder, tugging the blankets over himself in an attempt to get comfortable again. Normally, the sound of rain would lull him right back to sleep, but it sounded… different tonight. A bit harsher. Hail, maybe? Whatever it was, there was nothing Will could do about it -- all the windows were shut, the horses in their stalls, the chickens in their coop… 

_The cats._ And like that, Will was suddenly wide awake. He bolted upright and immediately pulled the curtains aside. Rain and hail poured down so hard he could barely see more than a few inches past the window. 

“Will?” Hannibal said in his sleepy voice. 

Will glanced his way. “The cats.” he whispered. 

Hannibal smiled sadly. “I think they will be alright.” he said. “Animals have excellent survival instincts that might surprise you. I am certain they found shelter long before the storm picked up.” With a yawn, he gestured for Will to join him in bed again. 

And though Hannibal had a point, Will knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep until he was _certain_ those cats were safe. “I’m going to double check the basement windows.” he said. 

Normally, Hannibal would suspect that Will was lying. But he was too tired to care that night, so he simply closed his eyes. Winston wiggled his way up to where Will had been sleeping, and Hannibal pulled the blanket over him, tucking him in like he would normally do to Will. 

Will resisted the urge to chuckle. He headed out of the bedroom, keeping his footsteps light so he wouldn’t wake Abigail, and went straight for the bathroom. 

He crouched in front of the cabinet and retrieved some old, tattered towels. Hannibal would kill him if he used their nice towels for what he was about to do, and he assumed that the cats wouldn’t care either way. Then, he tiptoed down the stairs, slipped into his rubber boots and a raincoat, grabbed a flashlight, and braced himself for the storm. 

Rain and hail hit his face the moment he stepped outside. Will gritted his teeth as he waded through the mud and puddles, making his way to the horse stable. 

He unlatched the door and shone the flashlight inside, searching for any sign of cats; but he found nothing but sleeping horses. 

_’They’re probably fine.’_ Will attempted to reassure himself. _’They probably just found shelter somewhere else.’_

And yet, Will needed to know _where_ that shelter was. He closed up the stables and glanced over to the chicken coop. _’No, definitely not there.’_ he thought. 

He then spotted the worn down shed just behind the house. It had fallen out of use over the years, and as a result, was nearly falling apart. But Will could see that the door was open just a crack. With a flutter of hope in his chest, Will struggled through the mud towards the shed, pulling the wooden door open. As he turned on the flashlight, he let out a huge sigh of relief; Botticelli, Micah, and Rami were huddling for warmth in the corner. 

He shone the light up on the roof. Rain water leaked in through a steady stream, making a huge puddle on the floor. Will got down to his knees and began to wipe it up. 

“Poor little guys.” he whispered, his heart aching as he heard Rami mewl sadly. Once the floor was dry enough, he placed the unused towel beneath the huddling cats for extra warmth. Purring, the three of them happily kneaded at the material before cosying up again. 

Now, it was time for the hard part; sealing the roof. Will, admittedly, hadn’t been prepared to be fixing a roof at two in the morning, but he’d made his bed and he was prepared to lie in it. 

“I’ll be right back.” Will said, and maybe it was because he was exhausted or just feeling particularly hyper-empathetic that night, but he felt as if they understood.

* * *

“Abigail?” Hannibal said as he made his way down the stairs. “Have you seen Will?” 

Abigail turned away from the stove for a moment to acknowledge Hannibal, and then turned her attention back to her omelette. “Nope. You haven’t seen him today?” 

“I have not.” Hannibal said. “I woke up to Winston beside me this morning. He must have thought I was Will, because he deemed it appropriate to _lick my face._ ” he added, giving the dog at his side a rather displeased expression. Winston simply wagged his tail, his tongue hanging from his mouth. 

Abigail laughed, grabbing a spatula and carefully flipping her omelette onto a plate. “Yeah, I haven’t seen him. That hail last night was crazy; it might have done some damage, so maybe he’s fixing something?” 

“Perhaps…” Hannibal said, slipping into his boots. “Would you mind feeding the dogs?” he added, making his way towards the back door. 

“Sure thing.” Abigail said.

* * *

The ground was soft and muddy from the rain, making an unpleasant _squish_ beneath Hannibal’s boots as he walked through the field in search of Will. He passed the horse stable to make sure everything was alright over there -- and fortunately, the hail hadn’t done any damage to the roof. He could see that the horses had not yet been fed, however, so he attended to that, filling each of their troughs with fresh grains and hay. 

Then, he checked the chicken coop, and like the horse stable, there was no damage done there, either. Hannibal grabbed the heavy sack of corn and fed the chickens as well before he continued his search. 

“Will?” Hannibal called. No response. His worry deepened, and just as he went to call for him again, he caught a glimpse of the shed. Its once-damaged roof has been patched up -- and it certainly hadn’t been that way the night before. Feeling a little suspicious, Hannibal approached the shed and pulled the door open to peer inside. 

There he saw Will, sound asleep on the floor -- and with the three cats sleeping on top of him. He was covered in mud and snoring in the most ungraceful manner… And yet Hannibal couldn’t help but smile. 

“Will.” Hannibal said, nudging him with his foot. The three cats woke, and Will did the same shortly after. His eyes slowly opened, and upon realizing where he was, he bolted upright -- the cats leaping off his chest and banging his head on a shelf in the process. “ _Fuck!_ ” he hissed, rubbing his forehead. 

Hannibal crouched down and helped Will to his feet. “Are you alright?” he asked, pushing his bangs aside so he could examine where he’d banged himself. Fortunately, it was just a slight red mark. 

“Ugh, yeah.” Will said, looking around as he re-grounded himself. “Shit, I didn’t mean to fall asleep here. What time is it?” 

“Just a little bit before seven.” Hannibal said. He glanced up at the roof of the shed, which had been patched up expertly. Then, he looked at Will again. “Were the basement windows shut?” 

Will laughed nervously. “I hope so.” he said, running his fingers through his hair. “In case you haven’t noticed, I couldn’t stop thinking about these guys.” he said, gesturing down as Botticelli rubbed against his leg. “I found them cowering in here, and thought the least I could do was patch up the roof of their little home.” 

Hannibal smiled. “Their home?” 

Will scratched the back of his head. “Yeah. I was thinking we could fix up this old shed. It’s falling apart, but not beyond saving. Buy some cat toys, some warm blankets, maybe even a heater…” he said. 

Hannibal scooped Micah up into his arms, the fluffy white cat purring loudly. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.” he said. “As you can tell, I truly didn’t want to give these darlings up. I have a feeling that whoever we gave them to would feed them store-bought cat food, and these angels deserve nothing but the best.” He booped Micah on the nose. “Isn’t that right, my dear? None of that Meow Mix or Friskies nonsense. No, you’ll be eating only the highest quality meats prepared by yours truly.” 

Will chuckled, reaching out to pet Micah’s ears. “I’m thinking I’ll take them to get their shots tomorrow. And fixed, too, if they’re not already.” 

“A smart idea. As much as I’d love to bring more beautiful cats into this world, three is enough for this household.” Hannibal said. He placed Micah back on the ground, taking Botticelli into his arms, now. “What a lovely little tomcat you are. Aren’t you the most charming thing to ever walk this earth?” he cooed. 

Will playfully elbowed Hannibal. “The most charming _cat._ ” Hannibal corrected. 

“That’s what I thought.” Will huffed with amusement. “Anyway, I’m going to head in and change my clothes. I don’t even remember how I got this much mud on myself.” 

“I’ll join you. I’ll get started on your breakfast -- and breakfast for the cats, too.” Hannibal said. The two of them headed back to the house.

* * *

“Dinner is served.” Hannibal announced as he entered the shed. He placed a large saucer on the floor, which the three cats immediately pattered up to. “Baked chicken breasts and livers served in a beef-based sauce, garnished with steamed carrots and broccoli. It’s a shame that I couldn’t add any seasoning, but I’m certain it’ll suit your feline palates regardless.” 

Will glanced up from the heated cat bed he was assembling, raising an eyebrow at Hannibal. “Broccoli? Hannibal, they’re carnivores.” 

“This is true, but I _have_ done my research, and carrots and broccoli are perfectly safe for cats to consume. Besides, the dish looked dull without them; it needed a dash of color.” Hannibal said, stroking Botticelli’s fur as he nibbled. 

Will snorted. “I don’t even know if cats can _see_ half of the colors we can, but if it doesn’t hurt, I’ll allow you to be pretentious.” 

“After fending for themselves for so long, the least we can do is give them high quality food.” Hannibal said. “And just so you know, you have done an _excellent_ job putting this place together.” 

“Of _course._ ” Will said, pulling himself up to his feet. “I may be a dog person, but I’d be caught dead before I made a cat live outside _or_ in some shitty crumbling shed.” Will plugged the cat bed into the wall, and placed his hand on top of it to feel its warmth. “Perfect.” he said with a sigh of relief, brushing his hair away from his face. “Walls and roof sealed up, cat trees and toys placed out, carpets laid out, heated cat beds assembled… I guess it’s just about finished.” 

“I’d expect nothing but the best from you, my dear.” Hannibal said, wrapping his arms around Will’s waist and pulling him close. He pressed a kiss to his forehead, and Will rested his head against his shoulder. “When winter comes, they’ll be very grateful for all of your effort. I almost feel bad that you’ve done all the work…” Hannibal said. 

Will smiled. “ _Almost_ ” was correct, but he didn’t mind being the handyman of the house. “It’s fine. You’ll take care of their meals and medications, maybe groom them every now and then.” 

“I planned to.” Hannibal nodded. “Perhaps I’ll knit them some sweaters for Christmas, too.” 

Will chuckled. “You don’t even do that for the dogs.” 

“I can if you’d like me to.” Hannibal said, brushing a strand of hair away from Will’s forehead. 

“That means you’ll be making… _Ten_ animal sweaters.” Will said. “You better get to work.” 

“I’ve already taken the cats’ measurements. Once I measure the dogs, I’ll buy the yarn and get right to knitting.” he said. He watched as Micah batted at his catnip mouse toy, Botticelli lapped from his water dish, and Rami curled up atop her heated cat bed. His heart warmed at the sight of his darling cats in their new home, which only made him tighten his embrace around Will, bringing their lips into a soft kiss.


End file.
